2019–20 Creighton Bluejays men's basketball team

2019–20 Creighton Bluejays men's basketball
Big East regular season co-champions
ConferenceBig East Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 9
APNo. 7
Record24–7 (13–5 Big East)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Steve Merfeld (8th season)
  • Alan Huss (3rd season)
  • Paul Lusk (2nd season)
Home arenaCHI Health Center Omaha
Seasons
2019–20 Big East men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 7 Creighton 13 – 5   .722 24 – 7   .774
No. 11 Villanova 13 – 5   .722 24 – 7   .774
No. 16 Seton Hall 13 – 5   .722 21 – 9   .700
Providence 12 – 6   .667 19 – 12   .613
No. 24 Butler 10 – 8   .556 22 – 9   .710
Marquette 8 – 10   .444 18 – 12   .600
Xavier 8 – 10   .444 19 – 13   .594
Georgetown 5 – 13   .278 15 – 17   .469
St. John's 5 – 13   .278 17 – 15   .531
DePaul 3 – 15   .167 16 – 16   .500
Note: The 2020 Big East tournament was cancelled at halftime of the first game of the quarterfinals due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rankings from AP poll


The 2019–20 Creighton Bluejays men's basketball team represented Creighton University in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bluejays were led by 10th-year head coach Greg McDermott and played their home games at the CHI Health Center Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska, as members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 24–7, 13–5 in Big East play to earn share of the Big East regular season championship, and the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament. The Big East tournament and all other postseason tournaments including the NCAA tournament were canceled shortly after the regular season ended due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The cancellations effectively ended the Bluejays' season.

Previous season

The Bluejays finished the 2018–19 season 20–15, 9–9 in Big East play to finish in a four-way tie for third place. As the No. 5 seed in the Big East tournament, they lost to Xavier in the quarterfinals.[1] They received a bid to the National Invitation Tournament as the No. 2 seed in the TCU bracket[2] where they defeated Loyola[3] and Memphis[4] before losing to TCU in the quarterfinals.[5][6]

Offseason

2019 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2019)
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Shereef Mitchell
PG 		Omaha, NE Burke High School 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 155 lb (70 kg) Jul 12, 2018 
Star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 29, 2018.

Roster

2019–20 Creighton Bluejays men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Antwann Jones Current redshirt 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Oak Ridge
Memphis 		Orlando, FL
G 1 Davion Mintz Current redshirt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Sr North Mecklenburg HS Charlotte, NC
G 4 Shereef Mitchell 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 155 lb (70 kg) Fr Sunrise Christian Academy Omaha, NE
G 5 Ty-Shon Alexander 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Oak Hill Academy (VA) Charlotte, NC
G 10 Jett Canfield (W) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 155 lb (70 kg) RS Fr Hayden HS Topeka, KS
G 11 Marcus Zegarowski 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) So Tilton School Hamilton, MA
G 12 Jordan Scurry (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr St. Mark's Chestnut Hill, MA
F 13 Christian Bishop 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So West Lee's Summit, MO
F 20 Nic Zeil 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Park Hill HS Kansas City, MO
G 21 Jalen Windham 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Ben Davis HS Indianapolis, IN
F 23 Damien Jefferson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS Jr Central HS
New Mexico 		East Chicago, IN
G 24 Mitch Ballock 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Eudora HS Eudora, KS
G/F 34 Denzel Mahoney 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Hagerty
Southeast Missouri State 		Oviedo, FL
C 41 Jacob Epperson 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 225 lb (102 kg) So La Lumiere (IN) Melbourne, Australia
C 43 Kelvin Jones Current redshirt 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Sr Hobbs HS
Idaho State 		Chihuahua, Mexico
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Australia exhibition trip
August 5, 2019*
3:00 am 		at Basketball Australia Center of Excellence L 66–79 
 20 – Ballock   8 – Jefferson   4 – Mitchell  Shore School 
North Sydney, New South Wales
August 8, 2019*
5:30 am 		at Cairns Taipans W 89–85 
 18 – Mintz   6 – Jefferson   5 – Mintz  Cairns Convention Centre 
Cairns City, Queensland
August 12, 2019*
4:00 am 		at Bullets Invitational W 107–79 
 25 – Bishop   8 – Jones   7 – Mintz  Auchenflower Stadium 
Auchenflower, Queensland
Exhibition
November 1, 2019*
7:30 pm 		McKendree W 95–63 
 21 – Bishop   12 – Jones   6 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (15,340)
Omaha, NE
Non-conference regular season
November 5, 2019*
8:00 pm, FSN 		Kennesaw State W 81–55  1–0
  19 – Alexander   7 – Tied   5 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (16,321)
Omaha, NE
November 12, 2019*
5:30 pm, FS1 		at Michigan
Gavitt Tipoff Games 		L 69–79  1–1
  20 – Alexander   9 – Jones   3 – Tied  Crisler Center (11,398)
Ann Arbor, MI
November 16, 2019*
5:00 pm, FS2 		Louisiana Tech W 82–72  2–1
  22 – Ballock   7 – Jefferson   5 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (16,919)
Omaha, NE
November 22, 2019*
8:00 pm, FS1 		Cal Poly
Las Vegas Invitational campus game 		W 86–70  3–1
  18 – Zegarowski   8 – Jefferson   6 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (16,783)
Omaha, NE
November 24, 2019*
1:00 pm, FS1 		North Florida
Las Vegas Invitational campus game 		W 76–67  4–1
  19 – Zegarowski   11 – Ballock   4 – Tied  CHI Health Center Omaha (16,562)
Omaha, NE
November 28, 2019
9:30 pm, FS1 		vs. San Diego State
Las Vegas Invitational semifinal 		L 52–83  4–2
  12 – Ballock   5 – Bishop   2 – Tied  Orleans Arena 
Paradise, NV
November 29, 2019
9:30 pm, FS1 		vs. No. 12 Texas Tech
Las Vegas Invitational 3rd place game 		W 83–76 OT 5–2
  32 – Zegarowski   12 – Alexander   5 – Zegarowski  Orleans Arena (N/A)
Paradise, NV
December 3, 2019*
7:30 pm, FS1 		Oral Roberts W 72–60  6–2
  17 – Bishop   8 – Tied   6 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (16,427)
Omaha, NE
December 7, 2019*
1:30 pm, FS1 		Nebraska
Rivalry 		W 95–76  7–2
  30 – Zegarowski   9 – Tied   6 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (18,068)
Omaha, NE
December 13, 2019*
7;00 pm, FS1 		UTRGV W 89–58  8–2
  22 – Alexander   8 – Alexander   4 – Ballock  CHI Health Center Omaha (16,346)
Omaha, NE
December 17, 2019*
7:30 pm, FS1 		Oklahoma
Big East/Big 12 Battle 		W 83–73  9–2
  20 – Zegarowski   11 – Alexander   7 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,146)
Omaha, NE
December 21, 2019*
7:30 pm, P12N 		at Arizona State W 67–60  10–2
  14 – Tied   9 – Bishop   8 – Zegarowski  Desert Financial Arena (9,395)
Tempe, AZ
December 28, 2019*
5:00 pm, FS1 		Midland W 91–54  11–2
  19 – Tied   11 – Jefferson   6 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (16,914)
Omaha, NE
Big East regular season
January 1, 2020
8:00 pm, CBSSN 		Marquette W 92–75  12–2
(1–0) 		 21 – Alexander   8 – Tied   6 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center (17,289)
Omaha, NE
January 4, 2020
11:00 am, FS1 		at No. 11 Butler L 57–71  12–3
(1–1) 		 15 – Zegarowki   7 – Alexander   4 – Alexander  Hinkle Fieldhouse (9,129)
Indianapolis, IN
January 7, 2020
8:00 pm, FS1 		No. 16 Villanova L 59–64  12–4
(1–2) 		 16 – Bishop   9 – Bishop   6 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,682)
Omaha, NE
January 11, 2020
1:00 pm, FOX 		at Xavier W 77–65  13–4
(2–2) 		 19 – Ballock   8 – Tied   5 – Tied  Cintas Center (10,529)
Cincinnati, OH
January 15, 2020
6:00 pm, CBSSN 		No. 25 at Georgetown L 80–83  13–5
(2–3) 		 20 – Zegarowski   5 – Alexander   7 – Zegarowski  Capital One Arena (5,920)
Washington, DC
January 18, 2020
3:30 pm, FS1 		No. 25 Providence W 78–74  14–5
(3–3) 		 24 – Alexander   10 – Jefferson   3 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,048)
Omaha, NE
January 22, 2020
8:00 pm, CBSSN 		DePaul W 83–68  15–5
(4–3) 		 19 – Ballock   6 – Ballock   10 – Zegarowski  Wintrust Arena (4,535)
Chicago, IL
January 26, 2020
3:00 pm, FS1 		Xavier W 77–66  16–5
(5–3) 		 24 – Alexander   5 – Tied   6 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,796)
Omaha, NE
February 1, 2020
11:00 am, FS1 		at No. 8 Villanova W 76–61  17–5
(6–3) 		 21 – Mahoney   10 – Alexander   5 – Ballock  Wells Fargo Center (15,501)
Philadelphia, PA
February 5, 2020
6:00 pm, FSN 		No. 21 at Providence L 56–73  17–6
(6–4) 		 15 – Alexander   5 – Tied   7 – Zegarowski  Dunkin Donuts Center (10,102)
Providence, RI
February 8, 2020
5:00 pm, CBSSN 		No. 21 St. John's W 94–82  18–6
(7–4) 		 23 – Zegarowski   7 – Tied   8 – Ballock  CHI Health Center Omaha (18,122)
Omaha, NE
February 12, 2020
5:30 pm, FS1 		No. 23 at No. 10 Seton Hall W 87–82  19–6
(8–4) 		 18 – Tied   9 – Jefferson   8 – Zegarowski  Prudential Center (9,736)
Newark, NJ
February 15, 2020
6:30 pm, FS1 		No. 23 DePaul W 93–64  20–6
(9–4) 		 24 – Alexander   9 – Ballock   8 – Alexander  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,865)
Omaha, NE
February 18, 2020
7:30 pm, FS1 		No. 15 at No. 19 Marquette W 73–65  21–6
(10–4) 		 22 – Alexander   8 – Jefferson   7 – Ballock  Fiserv Forum (14,329)
Milwaukee, WI
February 23, 2020
3:00 pm, FS1 		No. 15 No. 21 Butler W 81–59  22–6
(11–4) 		 25 – Zegarowski   7 – Bishop   6 – Ballock  CHI Health Center Omaha (18,148)
Omaha, NE
March 1, 2020
11:00 am, FS1 		No. 10 at St. John's L 71–91  22–7
(11–5) 		 20 – Jefferson   8 – Jefferson   5 – Bishop  Carnesecca Arena (4,260)
Queens, NY
March 4, 2020
7:00 pm, FSN 		No. 11 Georgetown W 91–76  23–7
(12–5) 		 20 – Tied   6 – Jones   8 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (17,696)
Omaha, NE
March 7, 2020
1:30 pm, FOX 		No. 11 No. 8 Seton Hall W 77–60  24–7
(13–5) 		 23 – Zegarowski   6 – Tied   5 – Zegarowski  CHI Health Center Omaha (18,519)
Omaha, NE
Big East tournament
March 12, 2020
12:00 pm, FS1 		(1) No. 7 vs. (9) St. John's
Quarterfinals 		(35-38 canceled @ Halftime) Madison Square Garden 
New York, NY
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central Time.

Source[7][8]

Rankings

See also: 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
APRVRV—————RVRVRV25RVRV212315101177
CoachesRVRVRVRV—RVRVRVRVRVRVRVRV222115111499-T

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings

References

  1. ^ Nyatawa, Jon. "Creighton falls to Xavier in Big East tourney, puts NCAA tournament hopes in jeopardy". Omaha.com. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  2. ^ Nyatawa, Jon. "Creighton basketball will host renowned alum in NIT first round matchup with Loyola-Chicago". Omaha.com. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  3. ^ "Loyola (Chi) vs. Creighton - Game Recap - March 19, 2019 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  4. ^ "Memphis vs. Creighton - Game Recap - March 22, 2019 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  5. ^ "Creighton vs. TCU - Game Recap - March 26, 2019 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  6. ^ "TCU hands Creighton double-digit defeat; Jays' season ends in NIT quarterfinals". Omaha.com. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  7. ^ "2019-20 Creighton Bluejays Schedule Stats". ESPN. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  8. ^ "Creighton University Athletics - 2019-20 (M) Basketball Schedule". gocreighton.com. Retrieved October 14, 2019.